Talk highlights history of campus expansion
Notre Dame School of Architecture hosted Doug Marsh during the school’s career fair to honor his legacy and the lasting impact he has made on campus through his tenure as the vice president for facilities design and university architect. On March 19, students and faculty members attended his talk, “Reflections on Building the University of Notre Dame Campus,” before his upcoming retirement at the end of this academic year.
Graduating from the Notre Dame School of Architecture in 1982, Marsh joined the university’s team in 1995 after some years of working in a private practice.
He has overseen multiple campus-defining projects, including the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art and the Campus Crossroads Project, a 400 million dollar addition to the stadium that includes Duncan Student Center, O’Neill Hall of Music, and Corbett Hall. Executive Vice President Shannon Cullinan called Marsh “arguably the most impactful builder in Notre Dame’s history.”
Marsh began his reflections with the humble beginnings of the university and the courageous dream that began with Father Sorin. Marsh highlighted Sorin’s creative brilliance, referencing a photograph of the early days of the school, saying, “Look at the simplicity of the foreground. … It’s still a farm to table operation. It’s hand to mouth. This core is still surrounded by hundreds of acres that still raise crops, that feed livestock, that feed the students and the teachers.” He continued, “That’s how humble the setting is. Yet Sorin saw beyond that. Incredibly visionary.”
Knute Rockne continued this vision, founding the legacy of Notre Dame football by promoting a new stadium, which was originally far from the rest of campus. Marsh jokingly reflected on their intention with this, saying, “You can almost hear them having a conversation. Let’s put it way out there. Campus will never come here.” This is the same location of the stadium today, and Marsh mentioned his own Crossroads project which “brought academic, student life and meeting space to the heart of this zone of campus, activating the student life unlike any other athletics venues done in the country.”
“We owe that to Rockne, and of course, any conversation about great builders at Notre Dame has to include the second founder of Notre Dame, as he’s often referred to—Father Ted Hesburgh,” Marsh emphasized.
Marsh praised the additions made by Fr. Hesburgh, mainly in the building of Hesburgh Library. He highlighted the library built upon the fundraising efforts of Fr. Hesburgh, remarking on the novelty of a “14-story structure on the Indiana prairie, likely the tallest building between Chicago and Cleveland at the time.” He continued, “It was a remarkable vision and incredible moment, made only more special by his decision to put the Lord on the south elevation … the ‘Word of Life’ Mural.”
After recognizing multiple other contributors to the formation of campus, Marsh began to address his own work over the past 30 years. Marsh and his team have made significant decreases in energy expenditure and carbon emissions across campus. His team has overseen the development of multiple new dorms and facilities including the new Graham Family Hall and McCourtney Hall of research.
Marsh dedicated a significant amount of his work to the South Bend area surrounding campus, and all the while his team made sure to “keep Notre Dame small, to keep it compact, to keep it walkable.” They redesigned the roadways, particularly Eddie Street and Angela Boulevard, with a particular intent to not “invade into those surrounding neighborhoods, but to actually protect them.”
Marsh emphasized his team’s dedication to the faith-filled inspiration which began this university, saying, “Everything we do shall be informed by a sacramental vision and our Catholic heritage. After all, Notre Dame is not a place purely of study. It is a place of prayer. … It is a place of spiritual formation.”
In response to the talk, sophomore Anna Hale reflected to the Rover, “I believe that Marsh was truly continuing the vision of Father Hesburgh in his architectural plans on campus.” She continued, “The Raclin Murphy Museum of Art recently opened in 2023—my freshman year—and it has been exciting to visit with my classes and friends. I love the array of beautiful and interesting buildings to visit on this university’s campus; and I also love the architectural team’s goal to ‘keep Notre Dame small, to keep it compact, to keep it walkable.’”
Freshman Ava Hall expressed her appreciation for recent expansions to the Rover, “Overall I do think that the expansion has been helpful as the university continues to grow exponentially.” She remarked, “What has already been done to compensate for this growth is very well integrated which I find remarkable.”
Bethie Benz is a freshman studying theology. She also takes classes on the pre-health track, although she is unsure why. Writing for the Rover is the newest activity she has added to her schedule to ignore her chemistry homework. She can be reached at ebenz@nd.edu.
Photo Credit: Matt Cashore
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